Got drugs??? Saturday, April 26 is National Take Back Day. This day is set aside to help you cleanout your medicine cabinet and dispose of your old, unused and expired prescription medications safely. This is a "no questions asked" opportunity to dispose of your medication, without contaminating the environment or throwing away medication improperly.
With teen prescription drug abuse on the rise and over 50% of teens reporting that they have obtained prescription drugs from a family medicine cabinet, what better time to check out your own family medicine cabinet. It is surprising how many medications you might find that are either expired, or no longer being used. Rather than flush them down the toilet or throw them away, take them to a location (you can find a site on line at www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov) that will dispose of medications properly while protecting our environment and our water sources.
Accidental poisoning from medications in the medicine cabinet (or left on a kitchen shelf or table) is another problem for our children. It sometime seems that young children are better at opening "child proof caps" than many adults, and with many medicines being colorful children will eat a handful before deciding they may not taste so great. In some cases it only takes a few pills to cause toxicity.
So, let's all head to the medicine cabinet (or cabinets) and do a thorough spring cleaning. Then, take that sack to your local drop off spot and feel a sense of accomplishment. We all should mark our calendars to do this every year.
